Buy a new version of this textbook and receive access to the Connected eBook on Casebook Connect, including academic lifetime access to the online ebook with highlight, annotation, and search capabilities. Access also includes an outline tool and other helpful resources. Connected eBooks provide what you need most to be successful in your law school classes.

Policing America: An Introduction, Fourth Edition, by Willard M. Oliver bridges the gap between police research and police practice. 

Former police officer and policing scholar Willard M. Oliver brings 40 years of practice and research to this engaging and balanced study of American policing. Policing America builds a basic understanding of contemporary police practices with a foundation of essential theory and research to encourage students to think critically about the role of police in American society today. In a readable style, the author offers a contextual understanding of policing concepts, informed by academic research, and balanced by the voice of the American police officer.  

New to the Fourth Edition: 

• Updated with new statistics and research, maintaining the same balanced approach between police practice and research 
• Discussions of the current crisis in police hiring, retention, and retirements and the strain this places on police and the community 
• Updated census data for police, sheriffs, and federal law enforcement 
• Updated information on American police academies 
• Many new “Policing in Practice” boxes and other real-world examples 

Professors and students will benefit from: 

• A balanced approach to policing, with discussions of best policing practices and research 
• Real-world issues and engaging hypotheticals 
• Varied presentations of data for different styles of learners, including charts, graphics, and summaries of key points 
• A focus on encouraging students to think critically about the role of the police in American society today